The present invention relates generally to the field of heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) control systems. The present invention relates more particularly to systems and methods for updating a group of controllers in a HVAC control system.
HVAC control systems are used to monitor and control temperature, humidity, air flow, air quality, and/or other conditions within a building or building system. HVAC control systems typically include a plurality of measurement devices (e.g., temperature sensors, pressure sensors, flow sensors, etc.), control devices (e.g., chillers, boilers, air handling units, variable air volume units, etc.), and a controller for receiving feedback from the measurement devices and providing a control signal to the control devices. Some HVAC control systems include a main controller and one or more auxiliary controllers.
As improved control functionality is developed, it is often desirable to provision (i.e., update) existing HVAC control systems to include the improved functionality. Provisioning is the process of preparing and/or equipping a network (e.g., a network of HVAC controllers) to provide improved functionality or services to its users. Such provisioning is typically performed by updating the firmware and/or configuration settings used by the HVAC controllers.
Current provisioning methods require considerable resources and effort to update the firmware and/or configuration settings on a plurality HVAC controllers. For example, current provisioning methods typically require a service technician to update each controller independently or require the use of complex PC-based tools. These PC-based tools often rely on a secondary communications network (e.g., wired networks, the Internet, a cellular communications network, etc.) and are often difficult to utilize at the location of the HVAC control system (e.g., a rooftop, a basement, a remote location, etc.).